Tony D'Angelo Makes Shock Return At NXT Deadline (WWE News)

The Don of NXT attacked Je'Von Evans at Deadline.

by Andrew Pollard
NXT Deadline 2025 Je'Von Evans Tony D'Angelo
WWE

In the NXT Deadline main event last night, it was Je'Von Evans standing tall as the winner of the men's Iron Survivor match, overcoming Leon Slater, Joe Hendry, Myles Borne, and Dion Lennox. However, the Young OG's night was ruined by the returning Tony D'Angelo.

The Deadline opener saw Oba Femi defeat Ricky Saints to become a two-time NXT Champion, and the Ruler later came out to have a stare-off with Je'Von as the show appeared to be going off the air. As we got the usual on-screen credits, the arena lights went out, a video played of a mysterious figure walking alongside a road, and a spotlight shone down on Evans in the ring.

From there, Tony D'Angelo could be seen behind Je'Von Evans. But when Je'Von extended his hand to D'Angelo, the Don of NXT laid him out with a chokeslam and dropped what appeared to be pieces of black paper - similar to what was seen with Ava on this past Wednesday's NXT - on the fallen body of Evans, as Tony stared at Oba Femi.

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For Tony D'Angelo, this marks a first appearance since July, where fans saw a heavily Sopranos-inspired vignette that suggested Tony may have been whacked, with plentiful speculation that the 30-year-old was set for a move to the WWE main roster. While a main roster move has yet to materialise, the Deadline return seemed to indicate a slight change to the Tony D'Angelo character, with him appearing a little darker and more serious than previously.

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As a result of winning that Iron Survivor bout, Je'Von Evans how finds himself with a shot at Oba Femi and the NXT Championship at New Year's Evil on 6 January. Whether Tony D'Angelo ends up having a role in that match remains to be seen...

Elsewhere at NXT Deadline, it was EVOLVE Champion Kendal Grey getting the somewhat surprise win in the women's Iron Survivor, securing victory in the final moments of the match after hitting the Shades of Grey on Lola Vice in a contest that also featured Jordynne Grace, Kelani Jordan, and Sol Ruca. Much like Je'Von, Kendal earned a shot at Jacy Jayne's NXT Women's Championship at New Year's Evil.

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In Deadline's other match, Ethan Page managed to eek out a win over Mr. Iguana, with All Ego hitting his Twisted Grin to retain the North American Title.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.